3 And Jacob sendeth messengers before him unto Esau his brother, towards the land of Seir, the field of Edom, 4 and commandeth them, saying, 'Thus do ye say to my lord, to Esau: Thus said thy servant Jacob, With Laban I have sojourned, and I tarry until now; 5 and I have ox, and ass, flock, and man-servant, and maid-servant, and I send to declare to my lord, to find grace in his eyes.' 6 And the messengers turn back unto Jacob, saying, 'We came in unto thy brother, unto Esau, and he also is coming to meet thee, and four hundred men with him;' 7 and Jacob feareth exceedingly, and is distressed, and he divideth the people who 'are' with him, and the flock, and the herd, and the camels, into two camps, 8 and saith, 'If Esau come in unto the one camp, and have smitten it—then the camp which is left hath been for an escape.'
9 And Jacob saith, 'God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, Jehovah who saith unto me, Turn back to thy land, and to thy kindred, and I do good with thee: 10 I have been unworthy of all the kind acts, and of all the truth which Thou hast done with thy servant—for, with my staff I passed over this Jordan, and now I have become two camps. 11 'Deliver me, I pray Thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I am fearing him, less he come and have smitten me—mother beside sons; 12 and Thou—Thou hast said, I certainly do good with thee, and have set thy seed as the sand of the sea, which is not numbered because of the multitude.'
13 And he lodgeth there during that night, and taketh from that which is coming into his hand, a present for Esau his brother: 14 she-goats two hundred, and he-goats twenty, ewes two hundred, and rams twenty, 15 suckling camels and their young ones thirty, cows forty, and bullocks ten, she-asses twenty, and foals ten; 16 and he giveth into the hand of his servants, every drove by itself, and saith unto his servants, 'Pass over before me, and a space ye do put between drove and drove.' 17 And he commandeth the first, saying, 'When Esau my brother meeteth thee, and hath asked thee, saying, Whose 'art' thou? and whither goest thou? and whose 'are' these before thee? 18 then thou hast said, Thy servant Jacob's: it 'is' a present sent to my lord, to Esau; and lo, he also 'is' behind us.' 19 And he commandeth also the second, also the third, also all who are going after the droves, saying, 'According to this manner do ye speak unto Esau in your finding him, 20 and ye have said also, Lo, thy servant Jacob 'is' behind us;' for he said, 'I pacify his face with the present which is going before me, and afterwards I see his face; it may be he lifteth up my face;' 21 and the present passeth over before his face, and he hath lodged during that night in the camp.
22 And he riseth in that night, and taketh his two wives, and his two maid-servants, and his eleven children, and passeth over the passage of Jabbok; 23 and he taketh them, and causeth them to pass over the brook, and he causeth that which he hath to pass over.
24 And Jacob is left alone, and one wrestleth with him till the ascending of the dawn; 25 and he seeth that he is not able for him, and he cometh against the hollow of his thigh, and the hollow of Jacob's thigh is disjointed in his wrestling with him; 26 and he saith, 'Send me away, for the dawn hath ascended:' and he saith, 'I send thee not away, except thou hast blessed me.' 27 And he saith unto him, 'What 'is' thy name?' and he saith, 'Jacob.' 28 And he saith, 'Thy name is no more called Jacob, but Israel; for thou hast been a prince with God and with men, and dost prevail.' 29 And Jacob asketh, and saith, 'Declare, I pray thee, thy name;' and he saith, 'Why 'is' this, thou askest for My name?' and He blesseth him there. 30 And Jacob calleth the name of the place Peniel: for 'I have seen God face unto face, and my life is delivered;' 31 and the sun riseth on him when he hath passed over Penuel, and he is halting on his thigh; 32 therefore the sons of Israel do not eat the sinew which shrank, which 'is' on the hollow of the thigh, unto this day, because He came against the hollow of Jacob's thigh, against the sinew which shrank.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Genesis 32:3-32
Commentary on Genesis 32:1-8
(Read Genesis 32:1-8)
The angels of God appeared to Jacob, to encourage him with the assurance of the Divine protection. When God designs his people for great trials, he prepares them by great comforts. While Jacob, to whom the promise belonged, had been in hard service, Esau was become a prince. Jacob sent a message, showing that he did not insist upon the birth-right. Yielding pacifies great offences, Ecclesiastes 10:4. We must not refuse to speak respectfully, even to those unjustly angry with us. Jacob received an account of Esau's warlike preparations against him, and was greatly afraid. A lively sense of danger, and quickening fear arising from it, may be found united with humble confidence in God's power and promise.
Commentary on Genesis 32:9-23
(Read Genesis 32:9-23)
Times of fear should be times of prayer: whatever causes fear, should drive us to our knees, to our God. Jacob had lately seen his guards of angels, but in this distress he applied to God, not to them; he knew they were his fellow-servants, Revelation 22:9. There cannot be a better pattern for true prayer than this. Here is a thankful acknowledgement of former undeserved favours; a humble confession of unworthiness; a plain statement of his fears and distress; a full reference of the whole affair to the Lord, and resting all his hopes on him. The best we can say to God in prayer, is what he has said to us. Thus he made the name of the Lord his strong tower, and could not but be safe. Jacob's fear did not make him sink into despair, nor did his prayer make him presume upon God's mercy, without the use of means. God answers prayers by teaching us to order our affairs aright. To pacify Esau, Jacob sent him a present. We must not despair of reconciling ourselves to those most angry against us.
Commentary on Genesis 32:24-32
(Read Genesis 32:24-32)
A great while before day, Jacob being alone, more fully spread his fears before God in prayer. While thus employed, One in the likeness of a man wrestled with him. When the spirit helpeth our infirmities, and our earnest and vast desires can scarcely find words to utter them, and we still mean more than we can express, then prayer is indeed wrestling with God. However tried or discouraged, we shall prevail; and prevailing with Him in prayer, we shall prevail against all enemies that strive with us. Nothing requires more vigour and unceasing exertion than wrestling. It is an emblem of the true spirit of faith and prayer. Jacob kept his ground; though the struggle continued long, this did not shake his faith, nor silence his prayer. He will have a blessing, and had rather have all his bone put out of joint than go away without one. Those who would have the blessing of Christ, must resolve to take no denial. The fervent prayer is the effectual prayer. The Angel puts a lasting mark of honour upon him, by changing his name. Jacob signifies a supplanter. From henceforth he shall be celebrated, not for craft and artful management, but for true valour. Thou shalt be called Israel, a prince with God, a name greater than those of the great men of the earth. He is a prince indeed that is a prince with God; those are truly honourable that are mighty in prayer. Having power with God, he shall have power with men too; he shall prevail, and gain Esau's favour. Jacob gives a new name to the place. He calls it Peniel, the face of God, because there he had seen the appearance of God, and obtained the favour of God. It becomes those whom God honours, to admire his grace towards them. The Angel who wrestled with Jacob was the second Person in the sacred Trinity, who was afterwards God manifest in the flesh, and who, dwelling in human nature, is called Immanuel, Hosea 12:4,5. Jacob halted on his thigh. It might serve to keep him from being lifted up with the abundance of the revelations. The sun rose on Jacob: it is sun-rise with that soul, which has had communion with God.